Fast SSD opinion needed!

[kidvegas]

Kingston SSDNow V-Series G2 2.5", 64GB, SATA Solid State Drive 200MB/sec. read; 110MB/sec. write (SNV425-S2/64GB

Bought a pair of these planning to build a raid 0 O/S+Applications array. Saw that they were on sale ($55 instant rebate at CC) $119.99 each, so I jumped on them.

Supposedly these drives use the 612 controller.

Have yet to crack open these drives but I have until noon to return them.

Wondering if my money is better spent on a single faster driver offering more iops, or if there's a better single drive or any other SSD configuration Im missing at a similar price point.

I've maxed out my budget at $270- after taxes.

Purchases will be made at CC, here's a direct link to the SSD page:
Canada Computers - Buy Solid State Drives in Canada

I'll be using the drives for Windows 7 64 bit and games/apps. Currently running a 3x500GB seagate barracuda 7200.12 setup and after almost 8 months I've barely used 70GB of the 120 GB short stroked partition.

Running an i7 OC'd to 4.0 GHZ on an x58 chipset (asus rampage ii gene).

Thanks for the quick reply.

[kidvegas]

Sorry for the double post. I know "need fast reply" threads are annoying. Im downto the wire here, and I've basically decided that its a single vertex 2 60 gb vs. the two kingston drives.

Canada Computers - OCZ (OCZSSD2-2VTXE60G) Vertex 2 Extended SATA II 2.5" 60GB Solid State Drive, Read: 285MB/s, Write: 275MB/s

Write speeds almost triple the kingston drive, 50,000 iops, & trim support because I wont be running raid.

However I'm clueless when it comes to all of this.

Reliability isnt really an issue. It's a boot drive, my data is backed up so Im not worried about an array failing.

Size also isnt of much importance, however 60GB is a must, and I did like the idea of the kingstons because of their size.

How much of a difference would I be looking at between 2x 64 Kingston drives and 1x OCZ vertex2 in terms of performace roughly?

[sswilson]

I'd avoid the idea of raiding ssds completely unless you're absolutely sure that the manual "trim" tool(s) will work in a raid config. Best bet is to stick to the best single drive you can afford.

[Kilauea]

I can't tell you how drives in raid will perform, but the Vertex II I got myself is nothing short of amazing.

[kidvegas]

supposedly the manual maintinance of this drive is vastly improved over its elder jmicron controller but still suspect.

Vertex avoids raid, full trim, faster writes (theoretically) than 2x Kingston setup, saves me $40 dollars, but slower maximum reads theoretically 400mbps in kingston raid) and less than half the space.

I really don't know what Im talking about, and I have no clue how the kingston drives are rated in terms of iops performance...


Thinking the Vertex II is a monster according to reviews, though.

Other option is to keep the kingstons in a non-raid setup. Use one exclusively for windows and the second for applications and pagefile...

So many options!

Edit Arinoth: You get one freebie on the double post, use the edit button if you want to add/change your thoughts in a post rather then making a new one. Failure to do so will result in at least an infraction

[Kilauea]

Originally Posted by kidvegas

and less than half the space.

Little correction here, if you are going to RAID those Kingston drives, its 4gb less, the "real" size of the drive is the same, but the Vertex keeps a bigger portion of its drive unused to make it last longer. Someone correct me if I am wrong (I know my way of saying it isn't perfect), but that is what I understood.

[kidvegas]

Well if the vertex uses more space for garbage and wear levelling and the kingston 64 formats to 60 in raid, its still less than half the space :p

[Kilauea]

Aren't you comparing 2 64gb drives in raid which will give you 64gb to a 60gb drive which will give you 60gb...

I must be really confused (those things happen a lot), but 64gb vs 60gb is only a 4gb difference.

[AkG]

The JM618 based drive like the V gen 2 are good drives for RAIDING as their "Idle Time Garbage Collection" is extremely aggressive. Since raid == no trim thats a good thing. The down side to it being aggressive is it eats cell life for breakfast, lunch and dinner!

Overall the Kingston SSDNow gen 2 V is a decent beginner drive but I know I wouldn't chose two of them over a Vertex 2. They will lose in all but sequnetial speed to that monster of a drive. This assumes you can afford the asking price for that beast. One thing is their "ITGC" is extremely mild so they are not good choices for RAIDing. So one is all you should use.

Another good single drive option is the Intel X25M gen 2. This is a GREAT first time SSD choice. Almost as fast as the Vertex 2 in many respects (though slower overall of course) but when it goes on sale for $205....its a steal. And a very good drive at its now normal asking price of 235.

IF you are dead set on RAIDing two SSDs....I would recommend a pair of Vertex 1 60gb'ers that newegg.ca has on for 159 + $10 MIR. They have mature firmware and while their ITGC is good its no where near as aggressive as the JM618 or JM612 drives! This means they will LAST longer. You get 10k avg writes to MLC NAND. So the lower the avg cell usage...the longer they will last (in theory). ;)

IMHO for your needs:
1 drive solution on a budget = Intel X25M gen 2 80gb
1 drive solution money no object == Vertex 2 100GB or Vertex 2 120GB
2 drive RAID'ed solution == Vertex 1 60gb